A review by grandiose_r
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

All in all, I really liked this book and its setting. The main character's emotional journey touched me and resonated with me, and I loved this story's celebration of butchness. However, there were some things that held me back from fully enjoying this book. The frequent use of racial terms that were common back then but considered derogatory now (when not used as a self-identifier) was really jarring. Also, for a book that centered a young queer Asian-American girl/woman, I was somewhat disappointed in the story's dichotomy of "queer white people" and "homophobic/queer-antagonistic Asian(-Americans)". In a story about finding yourself and community, I was frustrated by Lily only getting to know queerness as (predominantly) white, coupled with constant racist Othering. I would have loved for her to connect with other queer Asian-diasporic people and other non-white queer people - but despite there being passing mentions of other BIPoC at the queer club, we don't get any interactions with them, never mind Lily getting to know them better.
I also wished the plotline about her father's papers, the communist group and anti-(East)Asian sentiments/discrimination had been more present.

All in all an enjoyable read, but I think I'm at a point where I don't want to read stories about queer BIPoC with white love interests anymore.
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